It is with no denying that French speakers are almost everywhere. In fact, French is the only language aside from English spoken on all the 5 continents. With the internet opening the overseas market, you need to translate English to French in order to achieve business success in any French speaking market. Unfortunately, you can never pull this off overnight especially if you are not a French native speaker. That aside, today we are going to examine three challenges in English to French translation and how you can bypass them.
- French and English Have Different Grammar Styles
French and English have very different origin thus explaining why their style of grammar is dissimilar. For instance, French happens to be a two-gender language, meaning all nouns have a gender. The same case applies to French adjectives since number of the noun and gender alters them. This is something you are never going to experience with English adjectives as they do not change. To solve this issue whenever you translate English to French, it would be better to look for a native-level translator who can identify them without a problem.
- French Has Cultural Markers Unique to Its Own Language
For those who are keen about languages of the world, you will realize the level of formality they are built into tend to vary. Taking French as an example, the formal pronoun “You” is often used in a formal setting or a sign of respect depending with the region. This is among the most important things you need to consider with your French translation if you are to maintain the meaning. Luckily, this is something you can solve easily by looking for a translator who has experience with handling a wide range of demographic audiences.
- French is Longer
Chances are you translated a French book or song lyrics only to realize the text is longer than you expected. Well, this should not come as a surprise since French translations tend to be longer than their original English text. You should therefore exercise caution when translating text from English to French especially if it needs to be in line with a specific length. This is mostly the case with interface text or an app description. When having such texts, you should consider hiring an experienced translator who can create shorter texts without distorting your message.
The Bottom Line
The French language presents many engaging and interesting challenges whenever you are translating texts. You should therefore look for a renowned French to English service provider in order to get the best services. Fortunately, the internet is full of numerous French translation service providers you can rely upon. This does not however mean choosing any translator you come across. Instead, you should spend some time examining their previous work before making the final decision. It is then you are set to get the best English to French translation services hassle-free.
